Dianthus plant named ‘Paint the Town Fancy’

ABSTRACT

A new and unique plant cultivar of perennial carnation or pinks,  Dianthus  plant named ‘Paint the Town Fancy’ with numerous, single, lightly-sweet fragrant flowers producing a full rounded face. Each flower has five overlapping petals that are rosy-fuchsia colored with darker red bar in the center. Petals have coarsely dentate apices. Flowering season is strong for four weeks beginning in late spring and continues less densely to mid-fall. The habit is compact and dense with glaucous blue-green foliage.

Botanical denomination: Dianthus hybrid.

Cultivar designation: ‘Paint the Town Fancy’.

STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES UNDER 37 CFR 1.77(B)(6)

The first non-enabling disclosure of the claimed plant was made by Walters Gardens, Inc. on Dec. 1, 2019 in the form of a website brief description and photograph followed by a short description and photograph in the “Walters Gardens 20-21 Catalog” by Walters Gardens, Inc. The first sales of the claimed plant was on Jun. 29, 2020 by Walters Gardens, Inc. to Walla Walla Nursery Co. Walters Gardens, Inc. obtained the new plant and information about the new plant directly from the inventor. No plants of Dianthus ‘Paint the Town Fancy’ have been sold, in this country or anywhere in the world, nor has any disclosure of the new plant been made, more than one year prior to the filing date of this application, and such sale or disclosure within one year was either derived directly or indirectly from the inventor.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the new and distinct cultivar of carnation or pinks from the genus Dianthus and given the cultivar name ‘Paint the Town Fancy’. The new plant was the result of an intentional cross on Oct. 12, 2014 under the direction of the inventor between the proprietary, unreleased, unnamed hybrid known only by the breeder code 12-43-1 (not patented) as the female or seed parent and the male or pollen parent is the proprietary, unreleased, unnamed hybrid known only by the breeder code 12-47-4 (not patented). The cross was harvested and sown in the winter of 2015. The new hybrid was first selected from trials at a wholesale perennial nursery in Zeeland, Mich. during the summer of 2017 as a single seedling clone and given the breeder code number 14-33-5 later in the evaluation processes. Dianthus ‘Paint the Town Fancy’ has been asexually propagated at the same nursery in Zeeland, Mich. since 2017 using traditional shoot tip cutting procedures and later sterile shoot-tip tissue culture and found to reproduce plants that are identical and exhibit all the characteristics of the original plant in successive generations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Dianthus ‘Paint the Town Fancy’ has not been evaluated under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary with variations in environment including: growing temperature, available sunlight, nutrients, water, etc. without a change in the genotype of the plant.

The closest comparison plants to the new plant known to the inventor include: ‘Paint the Town Magenta’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 29,222, ‘Paint the Town Fuchsia’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 28,636, KAHORI® ‘Pink’ (not patented) and ‘Paint the Town Red’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 33,293.

‘Paint the Town Magenta’ has a similar habit and foliage but the flowers are slightly smaller and of vibrant magenta-pink, and does not have the dark red bar. ‘Paint the Town Fuchsia’ has similar habit and foliage, but the flowers are slightly smaller and fuchsia colored with lavender centers. ‘Kahori’ has smaller habit with more light green foliage and the flowers are more pinkish without the dark red bar. ‘Paint the Town Red’ has similar habit and foliage and the flowers are more reddish colored with a smaller dark eye. ‘Neon Star’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 14,549 has a larger habit in side-by-side growing trials at the same age, and flowers that are darker red with the identical dark-red colored center without an obvious eye. The female parent, 12-43-1, had a pinkish flower with a dark red bar, but was not saved as a plant and there is no photographic record for further comparison. The male parent, 12-47-4, had a dark red without the dark red eye.

Dianthus ‘Paint the Town Fancy’ is distinct from its parents and all other Dianthus known to the applicant in the following combined traits:

-   -   1. Single flowers with five overlapping petals forming a full         rounded face;     -   2. Petals have a coarsely serrated apex;     -   3. Petal color is a rosy-fuchsia with a dark red center bar;     -   4. Numerous flowers per plant on heavily branched upright stems;     -   5. Prolonged flowering period with a strong flush in late spring         and continuing to mid-fall;     -   6. Compact habit and dense, glaucous, blue-green foliage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The photographs of ‘Paint the Town Fancy’ are of a two-year-old plant grown in full-sun trial garden in Zeeland, Mich. showing the overall appearance of the plant including the unique traits. The colors are as accurate as reasonably possible with color reproductions. Some slight variation of color may occur as a result of lighting quality, intensity, wavelength, direction or reflection.

FIG. 1 shows the habit of the plant in mid-season flowering.

FIG. 2 shows a close-up of the flowers and buds.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PLANT

The following detailed description of ‘Paint the Town Fancy’ is based on observations of two-year-old plants in a full-sun trial garden at a nursery in Zeeland, Mich. with supplemental watering, light additions of fertilizer and free of other plant growth regulators. All color usage is in accordance with the 2015 edition of The Royal Horticultural Colour Chart except where common dictionary terms are used.

-   Botanical classification: Dianthus hybrid; -   Parentage: The female or seed parent is 12-43-1; the male or pollen     parent is 12-47-4; -   Plant habit: Caespitose, herbaceous, evergreen, winter-hardy     perennial; stems and peduncles highly branched, mostly erect stems     to slightly arching; height of foliage about 15.0 cm and about 47.0     cm across; height in flower is about 18.0 cm;     -   -   Root system.—Fine, fibrous; color nearest RHS 155D.         -   Vigor.—Good, spring planted plugs finish in 3.8 liter pots             in seven to eight weeks. -   Foliage:     -   -   Leaf type.—Simple, linear, opposite, decussate, sessile,             glabrous, glaucous both adaxial and abaxial; margin entire             to micro-serrulate; apex narrowly acute; base truncate,             decurrent, clasping; straight; no fragrance detected;             glaucosity medium.         -   Leaf dimensions.—To about 35.0 mm long and about 4.0 mm wide             near middle, average about 30.0 cm long and 4.0 mm wide.         -   Leaf color.—Young expanding and mature leaves adaxial and             abaxial blend nearest RHS N138B.         -   Venation.—Not pronounced; obscurely pinnate, coloration same             as that of leaf top and bottom. -   Stems: About 100 per plant; upright; cylindrical, hollow; glabrous;     glaucous; branching in upper nodes;     -   -   Stem size.—About 16.0 cm long to peduncle and about 2.5 mm             wide at base.         -   Stem color.—Between RHS 177D and RHS 195B.         -   Branching.—Numerous; typically alternate from lower nodes;             about 12 per main stem and about 200 per plant in late             spring peak; branch size average about 3.5 cm long and 1.0             mm diameter at time of initial flowering.         -   Nodes.—About 4.0 mm across; color nearest RHS 177D.         -   Internodes.—About 10 to 12 per stem before peduncle; average             about 2.1 cm apart depending on growing temperature, shorter             in cooler conditions.         -   Inflorescence.—Flowering in the upper 4.0 cm and to about             8.8 cm across; with an average of two flowers per             inflorescence.         -   Flower bud.—Slowly opening; glabrous; glaucous; with calyx             still closed: cylindrical with attenuate base and rounded             apex; about 25.0 mm long and 4.0 mm across; without             extrusion of styles.         -   Flower bud color.—With petals extended beyond calyx petal             portion nearest RHS 72A; calyx proximally between RHS 138A             and RHS 147B and proximally moderately tinted nearest RHS             187B. -   Flower:     -   -   Type.—Terminal, cymose; perfect; salverform; actinomophic;             single.         -   Attitude.—Upright to slightly outwardly around perimeter of             plant.         -   Dimension.—About 3.1 cm across and extending about 3.2 cm             above base of calyx tube and 5.5 mm wide at apex of calyx.         -   Flowers per stem.—Up to 3, average 2.         -   Pedicel.—Glaucous, glabrous, cylindrical, stiff; primarily             upright; short.         -   Pedicel size.—To about 2.0 mm long and about 1.5 mm             diameter.         -   Pedicel color.—Nearest RHS 144A.         -   Flower period.—Beginning mid-May with a strong flush for             about four weeks and continuing more sparsely through             mid-fall.         -   Flower fragrance.—Lightly sweet.         -   Flower lasting quality.—Individually about seven to ten days             on or cut from plant.         -   Corolla profile.—Lower part flat; upper portion flat to             convex.         -   Petals.—Five; glabrous adaxial and abaxial except at base of             adaxial limb puberulent; consisting of a rounded limb and a             claw; limb trapezoidal and limb and claw combined are             flabellate; limb apex and margin deeply dentate with many             teeth to about 4.0 mm long and 2.0 mm wide at base; limb             base attenuate toward claw; claw with attenuate base; bent             outwardly at limb base creating a flat rounded face;             persistent; having a darker eye.         -   Petal dimensions.—Limb to about 13.0 mm long and 17.0 mm             wide; claw about 15.0 mm long and 4.0 mm wide tapering to             attenuate base of about 1.0 mm across; whole petal to about             32.0 mm long, average about 31.0 mm long; darker eye about             10 mm across.         -   Petal color.—Young and mature adaxial claw base nearest RHS             145D and distally nearest RHS N74A, young and mature adaxial             limb distally nearest RHS N74A with 5.0 mm wide bar             stretching at base of limb nearest RHS 71A; young and mature             abaxial claw nearest RHS 145D, young and mature abaxial limb             base nearest RHS N74C.         -   Calyx.—Tubular; to about 14.0 mm long and 5.0 mm diameter at             apex.         -   Sepals.—Five; acute apex and fused in basal 10.0 mm forming             five-toothed calyx tube; glabrous adaxial and abaxial;             glaucous abaxial; margins entire to micro-ciliolate.         -   Sepal size.—Individually about 14.0 mm long and about 2.0 to             3.0 mm across at fusion.         -   Sepal color.—Adaxial nearest RHS 138C; abaxial nearest RHS             146C with apices strongly blushed to solid RHS 71A and base             lightly blushed nearest RHS 71A.         -   Peduncle.—Glabrous; glaucous; hollow, cylindrical; stiff;             about 8.0 cm long and about 2.5 mm diameter at base;             attitude mostly upright to slightly arching.         -   Peduncle color.—Blend nearest RHS N138B with light glaucous             bloom.         -   Epicalyx.—Two pairs subtending each flower; both pairs             adpressed; opposite, glaucous, glabrous; sessile, margin             entire; ovate to obtuse; inner pair narrowly acute apex and             truncate base, 9.0 mm long and about 6.5 mm across near             middle; outer pair with very short narrowly acute apex,             truncate clasping base, about 8.0 mm long and about 4.5 mm             wide.         -   Epicalyx color.—Both pairs variable; adaxial and abaxial             margin nearest RHS 145C and remaining middle to apex nearest             RHS 141B; no anthocyanin pigment noted.         -   Androecium.—Up to 10; not fully developed. Filaments:             straight to about 14 mm long and 0.1 mm diameter; color             nearest RHS NN155A; Anther: rudimentary or not observed;             oblong; basifixed; about 0.7 mm long and 0.3 mm diameter;             color nearest RHS 160C; Pollen: not observed.         -   Gynoecium.—Single; to about 29.0 mm long. Style: bifurcate             just above ovary; shoulder absent; to 21.0 mm long and 1.0             mm across; color proximally nearest RHS NN155D, distally             between RHS N186C and RHS N186D, hairs proximally nearest             RHS 71A and distally nearest RHS N186C; Stigma: slightly             flattened abaxial to adaxial; puberulent along adaxial             surface; about 1.0 mm long and 0.7 mm wide; color nearest             RHS N186C; Ovary: superior; cylindrical; acute apex and             truncate base; smooth, lustrous; about 8.0 mm long and 4.0             mm diameter; color distally nearest RHS 145A and proximally             nearest RHS 150C. -   Fruit: Not observed; -   Disease resistance: The new plant is resistance to center die out     from fungus or high temperatures. The plant grows best with adequate     moisture and well-drained soil, but is able to tolerate some drought     once established. Hardiness at least from USDA zone 4 through zone     9. 

It is claimed:
 1. A new and distinct Dianthus plant named ‘Paint the Town Fancy’ essentially as herein described and illustrated. 